Lean Manufacturing Techniques vs Traditional Approach

Lean manufacturing is a technique used in manufacturing units to minimize the waste within the system without sacrificing productivity. Whereas traditional manufacturing works on principles that emphasise on producing a certain amount of products every time and retain them for future use in case of unexpected demand or deficit.

Traditional technique still functions commendably for some manufacturing industries, however, in most industries, it is being replaced by lean manufacturing. It tries to save money by matching production flow with changing demand and concentrating on productivity rather than retaining it for future use.

Let us understand how lean manufacturing techniques differ from traditional manufacturing process:

• Traditional procedure majorly emphasises on revenue generation whereas lean manufacturing technology focuses on margin. The key principle is to co-create change with the people affected, in whichever manner and sequence makes sense in context.

• Traditional management believes in improving through optimization of value-added work. Likewise, lean eliminate non-value added work.

• In traditional team coordinates in activities performed through the central plan which is reviewed and approved by higher authority. On the other hand, in lean management, decisions are made by those closest to the work. This means people at any level of the hierarchy can give feedback and directly influence the next experiments for the team to conduct.

• Lean management technology influences the change that is an emphasis on leading indicators and operational metrics. Speaking about the traditional approach, they focus on just recording what happened i.e. they focus on lagging indicators and financial metrics.

• It is aptly stated prevention is better than cure, same goes with lean manufacturing, on the contrary in traditional management curing is rewarded.

• In traditional manufacturing, costing is a crucial procedure; costing is the demonstration of allotting expenses to specific production activities and steps. In such a case, costs are normally decided by office or departments, with one cost being allocated for all assets, all work, etc.

In lean manufacturing, traditional methods of costing create problems. It uses various strategies to effortlessly adapt the necessities of products and swiftly shift the production amount. There are a variety of work cells, each requires its own labour cost, resources and machines. Bulk costing procedures do not work well to represent production cost.

Implementation of lean manufacturing technology is important for high-value manufacturing and complementary to calculated decision making concerning production. However, it can be difficult to execute lean technology in some organisations. The major difficulty that manufacturers come across is in deciding which tool to apply and when to apply.

Another convoluting factor is the change in management. Lean execution is a remodelling procedure in which improvement is required along with supporting organisational development. To identify which lean tools are more appropriate for a particular organisational setting, different methods based on risk management are taken into consideration.

The method is demonstrated by application to a small manufacturing unit with high variety low volume plan of action. Therefore, it is possible to predict using conceptual knowledge of the organisation which lean techniques are significant in a specific situation. This helps in prioritising the methods that are relevant for the organisation at that particular time for organisational betterment.

Lean Manufacturing Technology is a leading consultancy in London. They thoroughly identify and delivers the best solution for your organisation implementing the desired specific tools. This helps industries to grow and transform operational efficiencies, maximize product quality, identify areas for improvement, and ultimately help implement corresponding Lean practices.